Sparrow in the Middle
by fandomgurrl
Summary: Poppy O' Hair's best friend Bea gets Poppy set up on a date with Sparrow Hood, Poppy's long-time crush. But what happens when, in the days leading up to the date, Sparrow starts to fall for Bea instead? A royal problem, that's what! Note: features my OC, Beatrice Beast, daughter of the Beast.
1. Chapter 1

**Please review!**

"Poppy! You officially have the best friend forever after!" Beatrice Beast exclaimed the second her BFFA joined her at their normal lunch table in the castleteria.

"Really? Well Bea, you'll have to introduce me to her," Poppy joked.

"Ha-ha, Poppy- but seriously. You are so lucky to have me as a friend. I was just talking to Sparrow Hood and happened to mention that you and him would look really hot together, and, well… He said he wanted to go on a date with you!" Bea excitedly told her friend.

Poppy nearly choked on her food at the news.

When her friend's face was no longer red, Bea continued. "The date's next Saturday at the Mad Hatter's Haberdashery and Tea Shoppe," she said.

_Excuse-i-hoo, Narrator!_

Madeline Hatter- I'm trying to tell a story!

_And you are doing such a wonderlandiful job of it- but I couldn't help but hear that someone's going to be at dear old dad's shop next Saturday._

Maddie, lots of people go to the tea shop on the weekend- it's the most popular place in the village of Book End. Now, no more interrupting. I have a story to tell, and if you insist on listening to the narration, then please do it quietly.

_Alrighty-do Narrator. Lip-zipping now._

"Bea- you are the best friend ever after," Poppy proclaimed, reaching across the table to hug her friend. "But- I don't know if I can do this. I mean, I've had a crush on Sparrow forever after, but I would be royally nervous and probably spill all my tea."

"No worries, Pops. Holly and I will come with if you want," Bea assured her friend.

"Thanks Bea- you're the beast."

"Only eight days 'till the big date!" Beatrice said, nudging Poppy with her elbow.

Poppy blushed but batted Bea in the arm. The two friends were walking down the streets of Book End. Their classes for the week had just ended, and the girls were searching the village for the perfect dress for Poppy to wear on her date.

Bea and Poppy eventually found themselves inside of Emperor and Empress Buff's clothing shop. The emperor and empress had opened the shop after their story- The Emperor's New Clothes- had ended.

"Here Pops, try this one," Bea shouted as she tossed the fifth dress over the changing room curtain that Poppy stood behind. After a few moments, Poppy pulled aside the curtain wearing a long-sleeved lime green dress with a flouncy chartreuse skirt.

Bea circled around her friend, eyeing the dress with extreme criticism. Five minutes later, she came to her conclusion. "Nope. Green's not really your color- and those sleeves? Blech."

Poppy retreated back into the changing room with a huff of slight irritation. The first dress had been too long, the second too orange, the third had an odd turtleneck, and the fourth had had a gigantic bow in the back that was the exact same color of nine-day-old Peas Porridge.

Bea skimmed the clothing racks, searching for the perfect dress. Suddenly, she turned and saw it!


	2. Chapter 2

Snatching the dress off of the rack, Bea sprinted back to the changing area and tossed the dress over the curtain to Poppy. Bea waited nervously for Poppy to try on the dress.

Finally, her friend stepped out. Bea tried her best to look critically at the dress- but she just couldn't. "I am a genius," she finally proclaimed. "It's simple, yet still gorgeous. It's the perfect color, and it's just so… You!" "So, whaddya think?" Bea asked Poppy hopefully.

"Bea, it's fableous, I love it," Poppy enveloped her BFFA in a tight hug. The dress was soft and satiny and a deep eggplant color that almost matched Poppy's hair, with a braided shiny silver belt around the waist. The collar was relatively low-cut, the skirt went halfway to her knees, and instead of sleeves there were spaghetti-straps.

"So, want to hex out the Glass Slipper- see if Ashlynn can find you some spelltacular shoes to go with that dress?" Bea asked Poppy.

"But Bea, you should get a dress too. Tell you what- since you got me this date, I'll buy you a hexcellent dress to return the favor," Poppy responded.

"I'll have to think about it," Bea joked while already on her way to the changing room.

(Ten Minutes Later)

"Pops- hurry it up, I'm getting old here! I would've already had five dresses for you to try on by now," Bea yelled impatiently out to her friend.

"Exactly- and most of them would have been awful. Now just wait, I'm trying to find the perfect dress for y-" Poppy's response was cut short as her eyes landed on the perfect dress. Poppy gently removed the dress from the rack and hurried back to the waiting area for the changing rooms where she promptly slid the dress underneath the curtain, crossing her fingers that Beatrice would like it.

After a minute or two, Bea emerged with a giant grin on her face- her Beast fangs showing fully. Bea twirled to give her friend the full effect of the dress. The whole thing was pale yellow, but the top was silk while the skirt- which was short and tight in the front, but flouncy and poofy the back- was made of layers of tulle.

"Oh my Grimm, Poppy- this dress is spellbinding! Now no backing out- you're paying for it," Bea was only half joking about that last part.

_Narrator, yoo-tihooti-hoo, Narrator!_

Maddie, I'm in the middle of a scene. And I thought that you agreed to be quiet.

_I'm tea-rifically sorry, Narrator. But I just thought that it was so hat-tastic that you're narrating in Riddlish._

Riddlish? I wasn't narrating in Riddlish, Maddie.

_Oh you silly Narrator. Of course you were- that part about Bea "half joking." As if someone can only tell half of a joke- well then it wouldn't be joke anymore, would it? Anywho, I'll get back to just listening. Alright Narrator, you can continue narrating._

"Hey Ash," Bea greeted the daughter of Cinderella upon entering the Glass Slipper shoe store with Poppy.

"Oh, hi Poppy, hi Bea," Ashlynn said absentmindedly while stocking a shelf with shoes. "Just got a shipment of shoes this morning. _Ahhh_. They still have that new-shoe smell," she sighed, inhaling deeply through her nose. "So, what are you guys looking for?" Ashlynn questioned.

"Well, Poppy here's got a date next week Saturday, do you have anything that goes with this?" Beatrice asked Ashlynn, showing the princess Poppy's new dress.

"Ooh, I have just the thing!" Ashlynn exclaimed, clapping her hands together like Helga and Gus Crumb when they were faced with candy. She grabbed Poppy's hand and pulled her towards a rack of shoes. Bea sat down in one of the chairs in the waiting room of the Glass Slipper to wait. From her spot in the store, she could occasionally hear Ashlynn say to Poppy, "Mmm… Wrong color… Nope, those heels aren't high enough… Needs more sparkles."

Then… "AHA!" Beatrice nearly fell out of her seat at Ashlynn's shout. "Here, Poppy, try these on," Ashlynn insisted. A few moments later, the two girls reentered the main room of the shoe store, and Poppy turned her foot from side to side, showing off her shoes. On her foot were shoes that were quite similar to the ones she'd already been wearing, hexcept that they were metallic silver, the laces were royal purple, and instead of being high-top converse shoes, they were knee-high boots.

Ashlynn insisted that Bea also get a new pair of shoes, so to make her happy, Beatrice complied. "Ooh, I love them!" Ashlynn exclaimed twenty minutes later. Bea examined what seemed like the fiftieth pair of shoes that had been shoved on her feet. They were pale pink satin high-heels with tiny pale pink tulle flowers on the toes. The two headed over to where Poppy had been waiting, then Poppy and Bea paid for their shoes, said good-bye to Ashlynn, and headed out the door.

Poppy couldn't help but be nervous about her date that was just a week away, but Bea was only filled with excitement for her friend. Little did the two friends know that the date would not go at all as planned.


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, you- Hood," Bea shouted out. She was attempting to get the attention of Sparrow Hood, but trying to talk to anyone while in the midst of dozens of students filling the hallways was nearly impossible- it was especially so when the person in question was more than halfway down the hall away. "Hood! SPARROW HOOD!" Bea finally screamed, getting her more than a few wary stares.

The boy finally turned around to see her, and her made a beeline for his locker where he waited while Beatrice caught up to him. When she did, the two started walking next to each other on their ways to classes. "So Sparrow, I've compiled a list of rules for your date with Poppy. As her best friend til The End, it's my job to make sure that this date isn't a major fairy-fail," Bea began. Sparrow gave her a strange look, but didn't say anything.

"Hey," she said suddenly. The two were near Bea's locker when she asked, "Could I see your axe?" gesturing to Sparrow's forest-green guitar. He handed it to her slowly and let go reluctantly. Bea opened her locker, shoved the guitar inside, then slammed shut the door. Sparrow let out a short, strangled noise, and Bea raised her eyebrows at him.

"Dude, not cool," Sparrow started to say, but at a glare from Bea, he shut his mouth quickly.

"Rule one," she told him, "You aren't bringing your guitar. Second, no going on about how great you are, third, compliment her hair because she will have spent hours working on it…" Sparrow pretty much ignored the rest of what Bea was saying, giving a nod every now and then.

When Bea and Sparrow arrived at Bea's Home Evillnomics classroom, Sparrow turned to leave, but Beatrice grasped his wrist, digging her Beast claws into his skin. "I know that you weren't listening. You can come to my dorm room after classes so I can run through it again. If you get it alright, I just might give your guitar back before Saturday- just so long as you swear not to bring it on the date," she promised.


End file.
